Follow-Up: Federal Judge Bars Justice Department From Threatening Election Workers; Government Appeals

SAN FRANCISCO — U.S. District Judge Trina Thompson of the Northern District of California issued a temporary restraining order on the evening of October 30 barring the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from threatening election officials and election workers with criminal prosecution to pressure them into segregating or setting aside ballots based on the federal government's claims that certain registered voters are ineligible. The order applies nationwide and runs until 5 p.m. on November 16. The Justice Department appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on October 31.

The case, SEIU v. U.S. Department of Justice (No. 3:26-cv-12800), was filed on October 29 by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), the League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), the NAACP and other labor and civil rights organizations. According to Democracy Docket, it is the first court order that legally bars the Justice Department from making such threats. Judge Thompson was appointed by President Joe Biden.

While the order is in place, the two departments may not threaten, intimidate or coerce state and local election officials or workers to stop processing a registered voter's ballot solely because the administration alleges that voter is ineligible; may not demand that officials purge those voters from the rolls, refuse them ballots, or set their ballots aside on that basis; and may not threaten prosecution against officials who refuse those demands or who count ballots as the law requires. The departments must also notify every government that received their ballot letters that the threats are blocked, and the Justice Department must disclose any pending search warrant applications or grand jury subpoenas tied to its voter lists.

In her opinion, Judge Thompson wrote that although the defendants claim their actions are designed to halt unlawful voting by noncitizens, their actions are likely to interfere with election administration and disenfranchise lawful voters. State and local government employees who distribute, process or count ballots in accordance with the law, she wrote, "do not violate federal criminal law even if a particular ballot belongs to a registered voter alleged by Defendants to be ineligible to vote." CBS News reported that the judge found the federal officials' conduct likely violated the provision of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that prohibits intimidating, threatening or coercing people who help others vote.

The ruling follows Justice Department letters to election officials in multiple states asserting that suspected noncitizens had been found on voter rolls. The department demanded that California set aside about 20,000 ballots and Washington 405, and prosecutors subpoenaed Los Angeles County election workers to a grand jury. The Justice Department says its actions are aimed at stopping voting by noncitizens, which is illegal. The department must respond by noon on Monday, November 2, and a hearing on a longer preliminary injunction is set for November 13.

Related: Justice Department noncitizen voter lists reach five states: courts twice reject bid to block California ballot counting

Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)

Photo: 图：位于 San Francisco 的 Phillip Burton 联邦大楼暨美国联邦法院大楼（450 Golden Gate Avenue），美国加州北区联邦地区法院所在地。Sam Wheeler 摄，CC BY-SA 3.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: The Phillip Burton Federal Building and United States Courthouse in San Francisco, home of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Photo by Sam Wheeler, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Latest in Justice

Noncitizen Voter Lists Expand to Five States as Courts Twice Decline to Block California Ballots2026-11-01Revised Federal Sentencing Guidelines Take Effect November 1: Fraud Loss Thresholds Raised for First Time in Over a Decade2026-11-01